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Roasted Turkey with Brine

For this recipe you will need a clean 5 gallon bucket and this needs to be started the day before you actually want to eat the turkey.





List of Ingredients



• 1 (14 - 16 pound) frozen young turkey
  
• FOR THE BRINE:
  
• 1 cup salt
  
• 1/2 cup light brown sugar
  
• 1 gallon vegetable stock (or any stock you want to use)
  
• 1 tablespoon black peppercorns
  
• 1/2 tablespoon allspice berries
  
• 1/2 tablespoon candied ginger
  
• 1 gallon iced water
  
• FOR THE AROMATICS:
  
• 1 red apple, sliced
  
• 1/2 onion, sliced
  
• 1 cinnamon stick
  
• 1 cup water
  
• 4 sprigs rosemary
  
• 6 leaves of sage
  
• Canola oil
  






Instructions



1. Combine all brine ingredients, except for ice water in a stock pot and bring to a boil. Stir to dissolve solids, then remove from heat, cool to room temperature refrigerate until throughly chilled.
   
2. Early on the day of cooking or late the night before combine the brine and ice water in a clean 5 gallon bucket. Place thawed turkey breast side down in brine, cover and refrigerate or set in cool area (like basement) for 6 hours. Turn turkey over once, half way through brining.
   
3. A few minutes before roasting, heat oven to 500 degrees. Combine the apple, onion, cinnamon stick and cup of water in a microwave safe dish and microwave on high for 5 minutes.
   
4. Remove bird from brine and rinse inside and out of the bird with cold water. Discard brine. Place bird on roasting rack inside wide, low pan and pat dry with paper towels. Add steeped aromatics to cavity along with rosemary and sage.
   
5. Tuck back wings and coat whole bird liberally with canola oil. Roast on lowest level of the oven at 500 degrees for 30 minutes. Remove from oven and cover breast with double layer of aluminum foil.
   
6. Return the bird to the oven, reducing the oven temperature to 350 degrees. Cook bird until the thickest part of the meat reads 161 degrees on a meat thermometer. A 14 to 16 pound turkey should require a total of 2 to 2-1/2 hours of roasting. Let turkey rest, loosely covered for 15 minutes before carving.